Another week in KZN brings us to the home of trend fundi and fashion buyer, Kim Rowan, with her ‘Industrial Glam’ kitchen designed by Wendy Douglas of Douglas & Douglas. We find out what the judges thought of this uber-trendy Frosty Carrina Caesarstone kitchen, and just how Wendy goes about getting to grips with her clients’ personal senses of style in order to come up with their perfect kitchens.
View Episode 7 and enter this week’s KitchenAid giveaway after watching the video below, and keep reading for this finalist kitchen’s plans, interviews and more!
HOMEOWNER & DESIGNER INTERVIEWS, PLANS & IMAGES
We chatted to homeowner and fashionista, Kim Rowan, to find out what her inspiration was behind brand her new, uber-trendy Caesarstone kitchen renovation.
What was your motivation for the redesigning of your kitchen?
When we bought our house the first thing we promised ourselves was that we would spare no expense in re-designing the kitchen. The existing kitchen was a purely made of concrete with only open shelving and one pantry cupboard. It was not practical from a storage point of view and the epoxy surfaces had discoloured greatly. Without windows it was also very dark and gloomy.
The judges loved how Kim and Wendy's kitchen so beautifully captured the trends of 2016.How prescriptive were you with your designer?
I know what I like and had a good idea of colour palette and had a few pictures from Pinterest and décor magazines to work from.
Were there any specific aspects that you asked the designer to incorporate in your design?
The main requirement was to create a lot of light and make sure we capitalised on the view of the dam and garden. The centre island and prep bowl was also a must.
One of Kim's requirements was a beautiful, marble-inspired Caesarstone island featuring a prep bowl and a matte, charcoal-black tap.How did you feel when you finally saw the kitchen finalised?
Blown away. It exceeded our expectations on every level. The space created was a lot bigger than I had imagined. I love the functionality of lots of drawers as opposed to cupboards as well.
Incorporating drawers instead of cupboard doors for storage access was one of Kim's kitchen design highlights.What is your impression of the Caesarstone product in your kitchen?
It really makes our kitchen. We have used it on every surface area and the centre island is full Caesarstone on all 4 sides which really stands out. It is simple, yet luxurious and I love the clean lines. I also love the cool, smooth feel of the surface.
Frosty Carrina Caesarstone helped to achieve this look for Kim and Wendy, and was used extensively on the island, as well as the bar counter and splashbacks.How would you describe your new kitchen?
It is a statement piece and adds the wow factor to our home, whilst at the same time being completely functional. It is a kitchen, bar and dining room all in one!
What relationship does your kitchen and kitchen activities have with the rest of your life?
It is an extension of our home. Our lives revolve around eating so this is definitely the most important area of our home. Our actual dining room table has not been used since we installed this new kitchen! We have gained a new dining area (centre island) and bar area as well as a wonderful cooking and prep area.
Kim's kitchen has become the centre of family life and her preferred space to entertain friends.How much assistance did the designer give you in conceptualising your new kitchen?
I could tell from day one that Wendy and I were on the same page. She took my ideas and brought them to life whilst adding elements that I had never thought of. I loved her idea of using rose gold elements as opposed to gold. She had a very clever idea of roller doors to be added to open shelving for a less cluttered feel whilst at the same time bringing through the industrial element.
What is your favourite aspect of your new kitchen?
I love the 'stackaway' windows leading out onto the verandah, but the best feature is the roller mirrors that reflect the garden bringing the outside inside!
One of Kim's favourite design elements are the rolling bronze mirrors that help to reflect the light from outside. Striking feature lighting also helps to create a glamorous look and feel in the space.Were you surprised to be one of the eight finalists?
I does seem a bit surreal but is the best kitchen I have ever seen, even if I am biased!
The final plans for this kitchen that helped bring Kim and Wendy's vision to life.
Wendy Douglas of Douglas & Douglas was the designer for this incredible kitchen renovation. She shares her insights on what it was like to create a new kitchen masterpiece in an existing space.
What was your first impression of this kitchen when you received the contract?
My first thought was that there was not enough natural light, the space was extremely dark. The other factor was that the existing kitchen lacked character.
Presenter, Danilo Acquisto, making Kim Rowan and Wendy Douglas laugh during the greeting scene in Episode 7 of the Caesarstone Kitchen of the Year competition filming.How prescriptive was your client for their kitchen design?
Kim was great, we instantly got along and established that we had similar design likes. She had a certain look she was after and we developed this further with her.
How did you manage to implement her ideas with your creative flair and insight?
My design ethos when designing interior spaces for a client is to incorporate the client's personality into the spaces. With Kim she is classic and elegant with a rock 'n roll spunky twist. We wanted to bring this out in her kitchen design whilst incorporating trends such as the copper and marble look.
Combining metallics with the classic marble-inspired Caesarstone helped to create a rock 'n roll edge in this design.What were the challenges that you faced in designing this kitchen and how did you overcome them?
The main challenge was the lack of natural light. This was overcome by breaking through the external wall to create a large folding stacking window. Not only does this new window allow massive amounts of natural light into the kitchen, but it allowed us to create an amazing indoor-outdoor flow by extending the Caesarstone top from the inside of the kitchen, seamlessly, to the outdoor patio space creating a bar counter on the verandah space. The addition of sliding mirror doors in the kitchen creates great light and reflection in the space by reflecting the outdoor scenic views and light.
The new windows allow the light to flood into the kitchen area, making the space appear bigger too.Were you intentional in trying to incorporate new trends into your design?
The trend elements we incorporated into this kitchen were the marble-inspired Frosty Carrina Caesarstone, copper elements such as the pendant lights and cup handles and the bronze mirror on the sliding doors. Open, floating oak shelves was another trend element we incorporated to display all the client's lovely handmade crockery, thus adding great character and charm to the kitchen.
The attention to detail in this kitchen really got the judges excited! They loved seeing the client's personality shine through.Could you point out to us some of your design elements in the kitchen?
The sliding bronze metal doors are a great design element to add the rock 'n roll twist we were after. These not only reflect amazing light in the space but also transformed the kitchen from an average looking ‘same same’ kitchen to a kitchen which is bespoke and full of character and spunk.
Here you can truly appreciate the floating shelves, the bronze rolling moirrors and how the industrial glam colour scheme works so beautifully in the space.What is your favourite aspect of this kitchen?
The sliding bronze mirrors and marble-look Caesarstone tops. The contrast between the funky rock 'n roll bronze mirrors and the classic, elegant feel of the marble-look Caesarstone tops is what makes this kitchen something really special and different.
A fun shot of series presenters Lisa Aspeling and Danilo Acquisto in between takes of the outro.Were you surprised to be one of the eight finalists?
Totally! I was super chuffed. Thank you.
A view of the outside patio and bar counter from inside the kitchen.
If you’re renovating or building a new kitchen, make sure you visit www.caesarstone.co.za to pick out your perfect Caesarstone countertops for the kitchen design of your dreams!
What were your favourite elements of this kitchen design? Let us know in the comments below and don’t forget to enter the incredible Kitchen of the Year viewer competition each week!